default root password not blank?

Hi there,

I just compiled mysql4.1.22 on a suse 9.3 machine. All went fine, but
when I try to change the password I get prompted for one. So I hit
return as it is supposed to be blank, right? But it seems to be not:

/usr/local/mysql/bin # ./mysqladmin -u root -p password testpw
Enter password:
../mysqladmin: connect to server at 'localhost' failed
error: 'Access denied for user 'root'@'localhost' (using password: NO)'

if I do the command without -p I get:
../mysqladmin: connect to server at 'localhost' failed
error: 'Access denied for user 'root'@'localhost' (using password: NO)'

Is there a special command for "blank"? As I noted using password NO for
hitting return.

Thank you for any hint,

Merlin